He graduated from Vkhutemas in 1923 and began working at the State Film
Technicum in 1929. Since 1939 he was teaching at VGIK (he was granted the title
of professor in 1952) where he taught Bulgarian animator Todor Dinov among
others, through 1987. He was a member of the Communist Party since 1951, and was
also a founder and the original Vice President of ASIFA from 1961 to 1973.